Grab a chance to own a piece of the woods

Rooting for change
Deccan Herald

Grab a chance to own a piece of the woods in these polluted times by adopting a tree in the City outskirts.

Would you like to own a mahagony tree? Or maybe a neem or an almond tree? The concrete jungle notwithstanding, it is now possible to grow your own tree and maybe even dedicate it to your loved ones.

Alt. Tech Foundation, an NGO, recently started a ‘tree-for-all’ campaign where the organisation identifies areas in and around Bangalore to plant thousands of trees. According to the organisation, “The campaign is for people who would like to do something for their city but do not have the time. Now, all they need to do is adopt a tree or gift it to a loved one for an amount of Rs 350 for four years.”

The money will be used by the organisation to pay for the saplings, for labour to water the plants and nurture it to a stage where they can grow on their own. Part of the money will also be used in helping the village that provides the foundation with the land. Corporates or individuals can adopt any number of trees. The trees will be tagged with the concerned person’s name or after the person in whose name it is bought and people can actually visit their trees.

Anuradha Eshwar, director of Alt Tech Foundation, says, “We need more sensitivity from people towards the cause. We want them to adopt a tree and not sponsor it.” Commenting on the foundation’s work in the last 17 years, Anuradha says what the foundation seeks is change, not mere improvement.

“By planting trees in rural area, it not only helps in fighting the rising levels of pollution in the surrounding areas but also helps in raising the water tables in these areas,” she adds. The foundation aims to plant around 50,000 trees and planting has already begun in areas around the City.

All such smaller projects, says Anuradha, will eventually be tied up with water conservation project not only in the City outskirts but in Coorg and districts of Uttarkashi and Dehradun.

“What we do not realise is that by planting a tree one is creating a whole ecosystem. The world is losing, forever, four species a day. Every time, we lose a species, we lose an option for the future,” adds Anuradha.

For details call: 25539344.